Read some of Ralph Lifshitz's 476 posts

The rumors were false, Lance did not leave to join the circus, he has returned and recommitted himself to the discipline of prospecting. Truthfully I kidnapped him and he’s locked in my basement, forced to 13 hours a day of game logging. Strangely he enjoys it. Yeah, I know what the hell is wrong with me? Bizarre fantasy aside, Lance and I dive into the prospects in the “tentative” Robinson Cano deal, the Mariners burgeoning rebuild, and all the small deals taking place. We then hit on some sleepers we’ve uncovered during our Top 30 work with Prospects Live, and why these are names you need to know. It’s the off-season but we’re still churning content to help guide your dynasty teams. It’s the Razzball Prospect Podcast powered by ProspectsLive.com. As always make sure you stop by Rotowear.com, and support our sponsor by picking up some of the freshest T-shirts out there.

The holidays are upon us and Lance is doing his first annual “Home For The Holidays” motorcycle run. Just a man, his chopper, the open road, a pair of chaps, and a cut. With our resident badass/mechanics expert on the open road, I call on a couple of the Son’s of Prospects Live in Matt Thompson and the newly signed Eddy Almaguer. This dynamic duo joins me as we engage in some spirited prospect talk. We dive into our expectations of Yusei Kikuchi and where we’re comfortable drafting the Japanese lefty. We follow that up with some risers and fallers from the AFL, before a quick look at which players are moving in and out of the Top 100 and who might provide sleeper value in 2019 re-draft.

We broke you off 80 minutes of prospect flavor, make a Thanksgiving sandwich, crack a beer, and tune into the Original Prospect Podcast! It’s the Razzball Prospect Podcast powered by ProspectsLive.com. As always make sure you stop by Rotowear.com, and support our sponsor by picking up some of the freshest T-shirts out there.

On Saturday Night my phone rang, my cellphone obviously I’m not a dinosaur. I quickly looked at my screen noticing it was Lance. This was unusual because Lance usually texts me. I feared the worst, perhaps Lance was kidnapped by a street gang and held for ransom. Was he lost? Cold? Did he forget his Keys IN CONNECTICUT?!? I put aside my panic for a moment and decided to answer it. **Deep breath** “Hey Lance, what’s up?” “WE HAVE EMILY COMING BACK THIS WEEK”. Lance then hung up and immediately texted me the rundown of his day like a normal person. Phone calls are for weirdos. Long story short, Emily Waldon of The Athletic Detroit and The Athletic MLB, joins us to talk some Arizona Fall League, Tigers Prospects, and some recent interviews she did with AA catcher Jake Rogers and AA outfielder Daz Cameron. (Yes, that’s Mike’s son.) It’s another episode of rapid fire minor league takes. I wouldn’t go that far but we talk a lot of players. It’s the Razzball Prospect Podcast powered by ProspectsLive.com. As always make sure you stop by Rotowear.com, and support our sponsor by picking up some of the freshest T-shirts out there.

The Arizona Fall League is pretty much the only game in town (America) at the moment, and in our quest to provide you with the freshest information out there, Lance and I welcome Jason Pennini live from Arizona… again. That’s right, we bring back Prospects Live’s resident scout to break down all the top performers over the last few weeks. We cover a handful of players with mixed league relevance next season. So pay attention deep leaguers! We talk a little Fall Stars Game, before rounding it out with my weekly “Ode to Ryan McKenna”. In total we cover nearly 20 players navigating between real life scouting looks and fantasy value. You’re not going to want to miss this one. It’s another episode of the Razzball Prospect Podcast powered by ProspectsLive.com. As always make sure you stop by Rotowear.com, and support our sponsor by picking up some of the freshest T-shirts out there

This is the opening where I make a joke about Victor Victor Mesa having two first names. (Insert laughter here) (Backflip into awkward transition). Oh damn, I seemed to have forgot to fill in the blanks on my “Victor Victor themed” podcast opening template. Well, now that the cat is out of the bag, the Razzball Prospect Podcast powered by Prospects Live returns after a two week hiatus.

This week on the podcast we talk the Marlins landing Victor Victor, his potential impact, and where we’d rank him in the Miami system (Pssst #1). Following some spirited Mesa talk, we dive triumphantly back into the 5X5 with 10 top performers from the first month of the Arizona Fall League. We wrap up the show with some discussion of the on-going Prospect 480 Mock, going through picks we liked and picks… well, we didn’t like so much. It’s another episode of the Razzball Prospect Podcast powered by ProspectsLive.com. As always make sure you stop by Rotowear.com, and support our sponsor by picking up some of the freshest T-shirts out there.

The Arizona Fall League is in full swing and my colleague Jason Pennini is out in the desert taking in Fall League action. Scouting is Jason’s full-time gig, with professional experience last summer with the Milwaukee Brewers organization. So he brings a unique perspective and understanding of what teams are looking for. Not only does Jason touch on some of the top performers in the first week of the AFL, he gives us some instructional league looks. He hit on players like Peter Alonso, Forrest Whitley, Bobby Dalbec, and Jonathan India, among others. It’s another episode of the Razzball Prospect Podcast powered by ProspectsLive.com. As always make sure you stop by Rotowear.com, and support our sponsor by picking up some of the freshest T-shirts out there.

It’s that funny space between the end of the minor league season, and the beginning of the Arizona Fall League on Tuesday. With limited information coming out of instructs (head over to Prospectslive.com to get those updates), Lance and I run through some of the story lines of the moment. In particular the Carter Stewart Grievance, and try to predict how much the young right-hander signed for. We then ask, “If you had to start a team (real life) with one hitter and one pitcher who would they be? Following that we jump into our biggest disappointments of 2018, where Lance and myself detail four players who let us down this season. As always make sure you stop by Rotowear.com, and support our sponsor by picking up some of the freshest T-shirts out there.

It’s our annual end of season Mock Draft Spectacular when the Fantasy Master Lothario and Myself (Vanguard) mock out the top few rounds of next year’s draft while the 2018 season is still fresh in our minds. Who goes 1? Is Mike Trout still consensus? That’s for us to know and you to figure out. Maybe Mike Trout doesn’t get drafted at all? There’s a Josh Rutledge drop for the homies, and a lot more where that came from. Sorry Razzballers, but you’re just going to have to listen to get the results! Anywho, it’s the latest episode of the Razzball Podcast. As always, go and checkout our sponsor Rotowear.com and use our promo-code SAGNOF to get 20% off all of your purchases.

I’ve been thinking about this post for awhile. It’s sat around in my head, trying to think of a dynamic opening. I guess it never came. Today will be my last post as prospector at Razzball. I won’t be leaving altogether however, I’m sticking around for the Razzball Podcast with Grey and rest assured the Prospect Podcast with Lance isn’t going anywhere. My efforts for 2019 and beyond as far as writing go, will be on my new site Prospectslive.com. This adventure over the last five seasons has been a blast. This was my first and only writing gig, and for that opportunity I’m forever grateful to all those involved. So while I’m leaving in one form I’m not gone altogether. Before I step aside there’s a few characters in this play I’d like to thank.

And so the offseason truly begins this week on the Razzball Prospect Podcast, as Lance Brozdowski and yours truly, revisit the July edition of my First Year Player draft rankings. We talk Gorman, Bohm, India, and others at the top. Get a hot take on Xavier Edwards value, and talk some of the other risers in this year’s draft class, as we begin to prepare for our offseason drafts. We open the show with some brief discussion of the Padres vs Rangers On Deck Game, discussing some of the top performers from both squads. As always make sure you stop by Rotowear.com, and support our sponsor by picking up some of the freshest T-shirts out there.